Just Between You and Me
by onigiri5
Summary: Barbara asks Hannah for a favor and Hannah learns a bit more about herself in the process. Follow up to "Night Reading".


The afternoon sun shined through the blue team dorm windows, flooding the room in an incandescent glow. Hannah always hated this garish shade of orange. It gave her an inexplicable nostalgic and depressing mood. She took a deep breath and then let out an irritated sigh as she stared at the ceiling while lying on her bed.

"I'm so boooored!" She whined with arms over her head. She quickly sat up and turned towards the other witch in the room.

Barbara, her roommate, was lying on her stomach on her bed. A thick tome with crisp, new pages lay in front of her. She glanced over at the exasperated witch and smiled.

"Wasn't it your idea to just hang out?" Barbara had her feet up. She kicked them playfully as she indulged herself with the latest volume of Nightfall for the third time. Her chin rested on her hand and she appeared to be content spending her Friday afternoon relaxing.

"Well, I was hoping to do something while we're hanging out." Hannah pouted and walked over to Barbara. With her hands on her hips, she leaned over with a frustrated look. "Didn't you just finish that, like, for the fourth time?"

"I only finished it twice!" With a quick motion, the dark haired witch flicked her wand. The pages fluttered until the hardbound book shut itself. "So you wanna do something else then?"

Hannah was taken aback by Barbara's rather forward question. She stuttered and tried to find the words, but all of her attempts trailed off into silence. Defeated, she sat back on her bed and stared at her toes.

"S-Say," Barbara began.

Hannah looked up and was met by a sheepish smile over a blushing face.

"Would you like to try something?" Barbara looked down on her bed sheets, her finger appeared to trace something invisible on them.

Hannah was curious with her friend's strange behavior. Barbara occasionally got flustered, but this kind of behavior was rather notable, especially since she rarely had a blush so vivid.

"Sure, I guess."

"Well, um, how about I ask you something first?" Nervous laughter followed Barbara's suggestion. Her eyes shifted and averted Hannah for a second.

"Go on, I'm listening."

There was a bit of hesitation before Barbara stammered out her question.

"H-have you ever kissed anyone before? Like, on the lips?"

Hannah tried her best to keep her laughter from spilling out. She pursed her lips, but ended up blowing raspberries before she ultimately gave up. She threw her head back and peals of laughter followed. It was maybe a few more minutes until Hannah found her composure and sat straight, despite the occasional giggle escaping her throat.

"I'm so sorry!" she wiped her eyes and apologized to her glaring friend.

"Well if you're not going to take this seriously, I'll be taking a walk."

"W-wait, Barbara!" Hannah reached out and held the Barbara's arm before she could stand up and leave. "I'm really sorry! That just came out of nowhere! That's all!"

Hannah was barely keeping her balance, her other hand anchored herself to her bed and her knees were slowly slipping off the edge. With a sigh, Barbara relented. Both witches sat down side by side on Barbara's bed, like they always do whenever the best friends have a heart to heart. Hannah always liked these kinds of moments; the ones where she could feel Barbara's warmth and closeness, where she could lean her head on Barbara's shoulder, where she could hold hands with her while they talk about small, mundane things.

"So have you kissed anyone?" Barbara reiterated the question, which caused Hannah to snap out of her daydream.

"Um, yeah? Maybe?"

"J-just answer my question already, Hannah!"

"Alright, alright!" Hannah put her hands up as if to defend herself from Barbara's piercing question. "I kinda had a boyfriend back then, but it wasn't anything serious! We kissed like once."

"Was it nice? Did you like it?" Barbara leaned closer and balled her fists. She had a frown, probably to show Hannah that she was serious, but it had the opposite effect on her. She looked cute with her "serious" face on, Hannah thought.

"C-calm down, Barbs!"

Barbara put her hands down but still had that "intense" look on her face. Hannah leaned back and waited for her best friend to relax.

"I didn't like it. It was weird and gross and awkward." Hannah noticed a disappointed look on her friend. She grabbed her hand, a familiar gesture that Hannah would always do whenever one witch needs comforting. "Is there something wrong, Barbara?"

"N-no! Not at all!" Barbara shook her head despite the tone of her voice betraying her emotions.

"Were you expecting a different answer?"

Barbara replied with silence. She looked down on her knees, furrowed her brow and bit her lip. Hannah allowed her to ruminate for a bit, understanding that Barbara must be trying to get over some uncomfortable things. She was familiar with these kinds of situations. Hannah remembered breaking down and crying on Barbara's shoulder when Diana left Luna Nova. Both shared the same silence before pouring out their emotions at each other. Knowing this, she waited patiently until Barbara summed up her courage.

"Hannah?"

"Yes, Barbara?"

"There's this person that I really like, and um, we've been been kind of going out together, but we haven't really kissed yet, but maybe I want to kiss them someday. So, I just want to know how to kiss someone and can you teach me, please?"

Hannah stared blankly with her mouth agape. She couldn't begin to comprehend what Barbara just said. The fact that her best friend just revealed so much in a rapid fire response didn't help either. Several thoughts swarmed her head as she attempted to formulate a response. Who is this person that Barbara's going out with? What are they like? How does Barbara even go out with them when she practically hangs out with her most of the time. Emotions accompanied these thoughts and they swirled within Hannah like a vortex until an unfamiliar feeling rose above the others and surged from Hannah's chest. It was a stinging pain, and it perplexed her. Nevertheless she ignored it, straightened herself out and attempted to sort out Barbara's dilemma.

"Wow, Barbs. I, um, didn't know you're going out with someone." Hannah squeezed Barbara's hand as she continued. "And, um, what do you mean by teaching you how to kiss?"

Hannah could tell that Barbara just realized what she implied by having Hannah teach her how to kiss. Her cheeks turned bright red and her eyes were wide open.

"I m-mean, like t-tell me how you did it, n-not like..." Barbara's voice trailed off as her throat went dry.

"Like, have me kiss you? On the lips?" It was just a tease that Hannah came up on the spot. Watching Barbara's cute flushed face was such a treat that she couldn't help but fluster her. She leaned in closer to her friend and gave the most sultry gaze she could muster.

"If... If you don't mind..." Barbara replied, averting her best friend's gaze. "It's going to be like... practice?"

Hannah never expected that response. She froze right then and there, still leaning, hands still gripping Barbara's, but she now wore a dumbfounded expression. Stunned, she could only watch nervously as Barbara moved closer. Hannah could feel Barbara's warm breath brushing against her cheeks, the smell of the familiar mint toothpaste was strangely soothing. Their faces came so close to the point where the tip of their noses almost touched.

"If you don't want to do it, we don't have to continue," Barbara whispered with a tender and gentle voice.

Another novel sensation welled up from within Hannah. Unlike the first one, it was a warm feeling. Surely, a single kiss wouldn't hurt. She has done a lot of things with Barbara already: held her hand, hugged her, exchanged secrets, took baths with her, just to name a few. That's what best friends do, right? What's a single stupid kiss going to do? It was going to be for "practice" between friends anyway. The warm sensation rose from her chest and found its way to Hannah's cheeks. She felt her head grow heavy from the rising heat. It was overwhelming, dizzying, and intoxicating. She closed her eyes and wordlessly surrendered.

Barbara's soft lips pressed against Hannah's.

It was weird. It was awkward. It wasn't gross, however. She felt Barbara's warm and moist lips tremble ever so slightly. Cute, Hannah thought. So cute, but completely amateurish, especially with how stiffly she kissed and how she was practically smashing her lips against hers. She couldn't help but giggle softly at Barbara's adorable attempt.

Barbara withdrew and Hannah opened her eyes.

"I-It's my first time, okay?" Barbara glared, her face growing a darker shade of crimson as the seconds passed.

"I'm sorry, I just thought this whole first time thing was really cute and I couldn't help myself." Hannah giggled again. She realized how close their faces were, but she didn't mind. "But it wasn't so bad." She smiled widely, trying to reassure the insecure witch.

"Well, if you're such an expert, why don't you show me?"

Barbara's pouting face did something to Hannah. She couldn't explain it, but the best way to describe it was that the heat in her was now a fire. She let go of Barbara's hand and grabbed her by the shoulders. Barbara opened her mouth to protest, but before she could say a word, Hannah pushed her down on the bed. Hannah gazed down on her best friend. Barbara's long, silky, dark hair radiated from her, her lips quivered and her eyes glimmered as they reflected the sun's afternoon rays.

"Funny," Hannah thought, as she admired the twinkling of Barbara's eyes. "This color really matches her."

The longer she stared into Barbara's eyes, the more desire gripped Hannah. She never thought of her best friend this way, not even in all those foolishly naive moments of hand holding, hugging, or catching a glimpse of Barbara's bare chest. She questioned why now, of all times, did these feelings erupt from her. Maybe she had them all along, but she never paid attention to them. Maybe learning that Barbara was interested in someone else sparked something inside of her. All these thoughts disappeared as the fire within Hannah incinerated all semblance of rational thought.

Hannah tilted her head and leaned down. Barbara closed her eyes and opened her mouth slightly, beckoning her to come closer. Hannah obliged and moved in slowly, her heart was beating wildly, her breath was growing increasingly ragged. The fire inside her screamed and raged. She gave in.

She gently kissed Barbara's lower lip at first. It felt like electricity. She moved up and planted another kiss, this time on both lips. Hannah's lips tingled as they met Barbara's. It was a pleasant sensation and yet the fire wasn't sated. She slipped a tongue through those lips, which gave no resistance. Hannah's tongue explored her best friend's mouth. It grazed against teeth and searched for her companion's tongue. It didn't take long until it found its mate and both tangled with each other. Barbara reciprocated and pushed herself against Hannah.

By now, Hannah was almost out of breath. She pulled back slowly, but not before softly nibbling Barbara's lower lip. Both girls breathed heavily, a shimmering string of saliva connected them briefly before coming apart. Hannah was still on top of Barbara, savoring her taste, as she began to explore her bare neck and followed it down to an exposed part of her collarbone. The fire growled from within Hannah. It desired, but she knew better. It took all the willpower in her to stop herself from continuing. She pushed herself away from Barbara and lay on her side and attempted to quell the desire.

A few minutes passed and their breathing slowed down. Hannah's throbbing temples and pounding chest subsided. Her eyes looked to the ceiling, focusing on that dreadful orange color. She never understood why, for a moment, she loved it. Feeling Barbara's fingers entwining over hers, she looked to her side to see a familiar smile.

"Th-that was something, wasn't it?" Hannah stammered thanks to the adrenaline still coursing through her. Barbara nodded in reply, her face rather pink.

"Thanks for showing me, Hannah."

Hannah sighed and tilted her head towards Barbara, as if she leaned on her shoulder. "Of course, I'm your best friend after all!" It hurt her just to say that. Barbara giggled in response and tilted her head towards Hannah in response.

Another minute of silence followed as they found themselves in a familiar situation. Hannah thought of all the times Barbara and her stared at the ceiling like this, side by side, hands held tight and heads leaning on one another. She wondered if Barbara has done the same with this person she likes. She wondered how often Barbara would be willing to hang out with her now that she might be going on more dates. The thought of losing Barbara was beginning to eat at her.

"So... your crush. What's she like?"

"Hmm... I guess she's really sweet, kind, really shy. She doesn't really like standing out, but I think she needs to be more outgoing. I mean, I didn't really think much of her until recently and...wait, how did you know she's a girl?"

Hannah snickered. "You're telling me I don't know anything about my best friend who I just totally french kissed right now?"

Barbara laughed sheepishly in response.

"Come on, tell me more about her!"

"You really want to know more?"

"Of course! I want to make sure my best friend has the best girlfriend because I..." Hannah's voice trailed off as she felt a lump in her throat swell. Her vision blurred as tears began to well up. The heat was gone now, but it was replaced by the piercing pain that she felt earlier.

"Because you...what?"

"Nothing! It's a secret!" Hannah quickly wiped the tears with her sleeve before Barbara could notice.

Barbara looked over at her with a pout, her face still pink from blushing. Hannah smiled back despite feeling quite miserable inside.

"Well, since you're an expert now, I guess you don't need me for your 'practice' sessions."

"Geez, stop teasing me already!"

Both girls laughed as they enjoyed each other's company. Perhaps to Barbara, it was another silly episode with her best friend; a particularly unusual one, although they were never strangers to intimate moments. For Hannah, it was a realization that may have come too late.

"So you think I can meet your girlfriend any time soon?"

Barbara hummed and put a finger to her chin. "Maybe," she replied with a smile. "I'm sure you'll like her when you get to know her more."

"And..." Hannah's voice trailed off for moment. "Promise me we'll still be best friends, no matter what?"

Barbara had a confused look at first but smiled. "Of course, silly! Always!"

Hannah could feel the pain take root in her heart.

* * *

 **AN: I wanted to write something with Hannah, Barbara and Lotte in it and how a love triangle between the three of them would work, but I couldn't really fit Lotte in this situation. Maybe in another story...**


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